from States Newsroom
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By Kelcie Moseley-Morris |
“With Prop 1 being on the ballot, I feel like people have this kind of idea in their brain of what people who have abortions are like, and I feel like I kind of break that mold for a lot of people.”
— Rebecca Crozier on Idaho’s abortion-rights initiative
Rebecca Crozier, 27, poses in October 2026 with mementos from her pregnancy. She had to leave Idaho to get an abortion after she received a fatal fetal diagnosis at 11 weeks. (Photo by Otto Kitsinger for Stateline)
It didn’t take long for doctors to see that something was amiss with Rebecca Crozier’s pregnancy.
At her eight-week ultrasound in 2025, they mentioned a possible neural tube defect, she said, but after some research, she thought it was something that could be managed or treated.
“If it was a fixable problem, I was ready to quit my job and full-time care for a disabled child,” said Crozier, who is now 27. “That was something that we were prepared to do.”
In the time between the two ultrasounds, she had a dream that she was carrying a baby girl, and she and her husband named her Haven.
The couple lived in eastern Idaho at the time, and drove two hours to the Boise area to see the maternal-fetal medicine specialists at St. Luke’s, the state’s largest health system. Now at 11 weeks’ gestation, the specialists told her Haven had anencephaly, which occurs when the brain does not develop normally and the skull is left open, exposing brain tissue to amniotic fluid that causes the tissue to dissolve. It is a fatal condition.
“She was missing a lot of brain tissue,” Crozier recalled. “They were very clear that this baby will not go home with you. You will not take this baby home. This baby will die in the hospital if the baby survives that long.”
In many states, even ones with abortion bans, Crozier would have had the option to terminate the pregnancy. But Idaho’s near-total prohibition includes no exceptions for fatal anomalies. It’s one of 11 states that do not have exceptions for anencephaly or other fatal anomalies.
Next Tuesday, Idahoans will vote to determine whether the state’s near-total abortion ban should remain the law. Proposition 1, the title of the citizen-led ballot measure, would restore access to abortion until fetal viability, which was the state law before the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Idaho is the only state this election cycle with an initiative that would restore access in a state with a ban. In Missouri, voters will consider a different initiative — to reinstate a near-total ban after passing a constitutional amendment in 2024 allowing abortion access until viability.
If Idaho’s measure passes, patients like Crozier would no longer have to leave the state for an abortion.
THE POD
Next on our Stories From The States podcast: Ballot measures are top draw in some states
In some states, ballot measures are expected to be the main force driving voters to the polls in November. Across the country, voters will decide 145 questions during the midterms.
Reproductive rights are on the ballot in four states. In California, residents will decide on a “billionaire’s tax,” among other issues. Elsewhere, ballot questions could determine who has the power to initiate future questions and whether lawmakers have the power to overturn them. There’s a lot on the line.
THE BEAT
Many Asian American, Pacific Islander women don’t have a reproductive health provider
Women with the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum walk down the streets of Washington, D.C., at a 2022 Unity March against anti-Asian racism. A recent survey led by the group found nearly half of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women don’t have a reproductive healthcare provider. (Photo courtesy of National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum)
A survey of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women and gender-expansive people found nearly half of respondents don’t have a reproductive healthcare provider and more than half don’t know how far they would need to travel for abortion care.
About 57% also said they are caregivers to a child or aging family member, and 23% said they themselves or someone they know have avoided travel, medical care, work or public spaces because of immigration status concerns.
Fajer Saeed Ebrahim, vice president of policy and research at the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, which commissioned the survey, said it’s the first of a five-year survey project the organization has planned to observe trends over time.
“I think our women face many of the same challenges as many other communities of color, but our experiences are often missing from policy discussions,” Saeed Ebrahim said.
Most of those who responded lived in states with legal access to abortion, while about 20% lived in states where it was illegal or heavily restricted. About 56% were unsure how far they would need to travel for an abortion, and 31% were unsure how far they’d need to go for general reproductive healthcare. Of those who did have an estimate, most said they would need to travel less than an hour for reproductive healthcare other than abortion. Japanese women and those with lower incomes were most likely to say they did not have a reproductive healthcare provider.
THE PULSE
US: 900+ women criminally charged for their conduct during pregnancies post-Roe | Stateline
ID: Idaho anti-abortion groups sue to stop Prop 1 TV ads paid for by Dems | Idaho Capital Sun
VA: If Virginians approve reproductive rights amendment, a hearing is set for Nov. 13 to challenge it | Virginia Mercury
MO: Missouri pastors take opposing sides in fight over abortion amendment | Missouri Independent
OH: Where Ohio’s candidates for governor stand on abortion | Ohio Capital Journal
VA: More people need assistance to obtain abortions as living costs rise, Virginia abortion fund reports | Virginia Mercury
ABORTION ACCESS IN THE U.S.
Track state-level developments on reproductive rights anytime at News From The States. Send tips and thoughts to ✉️ [email protected], , and follow her on Bluesky @kelciemmorris.bsky.social.
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